Shore Patrol: Hail! Hail! The pedicabs are all on Second St.

Foot traffic along Belmont Shore's Second Street has often been brisk.

But the folks at the Long Beach Pedaler Society would like to take visitors off their feet.

They operate taxis, a bicycle with a passenger carriage, known more generally as a rickshaw or pedicab.

"It's a short-distance taxi," emphasized Jesus Chavez, who was serving customers near Legends Sport Bar, along with Joe Bradley and Justin "Congo" Mitchell.

The three operators of bicycle taxis cover mainly Second Street - the main retail and restaurant row - but there is also service to the nearby Peninsula area, Naples, Belmont Heights and the Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier.

Many customers are residents of the Belmont Shore area who want to avoid a long walk, or who want a fun ride about the area without the headaches of looking for a parking space.

Others - after eating too much at a restaurant - decide they don't want to walk home, Chavez said.

"Once they get on, it's repeat business," he added.

The price is modest, the operators said. Anywhere in the Shore is about $3 to $5; on the Peninsula or in Naples, the price range is between $5 and $7, the operators said.

The Long Beach Pedaler Society taxi company hopes to expand its fleet of seven carriages once the economy improves, Chavez said.

However, the company is shifting away from courier service.

"It's not as much as what we do now," Chavez said. "We offer the service, but it's not our primary source of business."

On rainy days, the taxi service is canceled, for safety reasons.

On clear days, riding along Second is smooth going, thanks in part to the sharrow zones for bicyclists.

"For the most part, the Belmont Shore traffic is not that fast," Chavez said, an understatement most drivers in the bumper-to-bumper traffic wouldn't challenge.